Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV Boosts Holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV increased its holdings in 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,692 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the period. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV’s holdings in 3M were worth $512,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in 3M by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,033,679 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $4,590,533,000 after purchasing an additional 317,483 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in 3M by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,474,791 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,203,635,000 after purchasing an additional 619,370 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in 3M by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,315,417 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,684,639,000 after acquiring an additional 758,126 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in 3M by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,769,973 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,291,535,000 after acquiring an additional 825,223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in 3M by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,413,149 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,103,670,000 after acquiring an additional 44,714 shares during the last quarter. 65.25% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

3M Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of MMM stock traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $91.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,471,287 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,876,985. 3M has a 12-month low of $71.12 and a 12-month high of $95.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.44 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $95.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.11. 3M had a positive return on equity of 62.45% and a negative net margin of 21.40%. The business had revenue of $8.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.28 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that 3M will post 8.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a dividend of $1.51 per share. This is a boost from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio is -47.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMM has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on 3M from $118.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays reduced their price objective on 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on 3M from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total transaction of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

3M Company Profile

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company's Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.